Stairs are important to keep everyone safe, especially when you have many guests coming over on a daily or weekly basis. Hiring a professional might cost you a fortune if you wonder how to replace basement stairs. In fact, it requires careful planning and good hands to do so. This article will guide you on how!
How Are Normal Basement Stairs?
Before we dive deeper into how to replace basement stairs, you have to know what common basement stairs look like. Although it looks simple, there is a stair’s anatomy. Stairs are divided into four parts, which are treads, nosing, stingers, and risers.
Treads are the horizontal space that you usually step on. Meanwhile, risers are the vertical surface in between stairs. If you see the siding parts of your stairs, it is called stingers. Commonly, it expands from the top to the bottom. Last, the cap or front part of your staircase is nosing.
The Size of the Basement Stairs
If you are about to repair your basement stairs, you must calculate the height of the treads and the stair risers. Typically, both combined will be around 17 inches.
Treads are 10 inches, while the staircase risers are around 7 inches. You have to install the stringers at a 35-degree angle to ensure everyone’s safety.
How to Replace Basement Stairs
Commonly, the worn-out parts of basement stairs are the treads and the risers. Why so? It is because these are the surfaces that many people walk on.
Apart from that, you also need to measure the height counted from the floor to the top surface of the stairs. Once you know the height, you should divide it by seven to count how many stair risers you should get. This is important, so you will have the right stringer to install.
Ways to Prepare Your Stairs Wood
Knowing how to mark the wood for your staircase is important as how to replace basement stairs. Once you get the exact number, you have to make star gauges for the framing square.
First, place your wood and ensure it does not have any bent. Check if it is straight or owns any defects. This is important to make sure the surface of your staircase is smooth.
Grab a square ruler and calculate the height for each tread. After that, mark the wood one by one. You can continue doing so by following the previous mark and finishing until all squares are even. After that, remove the gauges, and they are ready to be cut.
Once ready, you can cut the wood with a circular saw. However, you should not complete the cut using it. You only need to use it for most of the part and finish it with a sharp handsaw.
Switching the saws is necessary, so the wood can retain its density and strength. It is also to ensure that each staircase riser and stringers have the exact thickness between one and another.
After finishing, you can place the wood one by one. Be careful so you will not misplace it, as it will become the landing surface of your stairs.
These will also be the joint points for your stringers. Do not forget to check if the stringers and risers are safely attached. Hope this article answers your question: how to replace basement stairs!